


doctor's orders

by hanzios



Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Alternate Universe - Medical, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Doctor! Rafael Barba, Fluff, M/M, Mutual Pining, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-20
Updated: 2020-04-20
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:33:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23746126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hanzios/pseuds/hanzios
Summary: Sonny had been waiting for that moment his entire life. When they were children, he and his sisters would dream up scenarios on how they would meet their soulmates.Definitely, getting shot, going into surgery, and waking up without even seeing his soulmate wasn’t one situation he’d thought about.
Relationships: Rafael Barba/Dominick "Sonny" Carisi Jr.
Comments: 21
Kudos: 129
Collections: April 2020 Barisi Bingo





	doctor's orders

**Author's Note:**

> look at me not using a song lyric as my fic title

When Sonny regained consciousness, he found that his eyelids were still too heavy to open.

A rush of discomfort emanated from his abdomen – a painful sting that spread through his lower body. Hissing, he finally had the adequate amount of strength to open his eyes. At first, a blinding white pierced his vision, and briefly, he wondered if he’d died and gone to heaven. But as quick as it appeared, the light faded, and his eyes zeroed in on his surroundings.

He almost jumped out of the bed because of what he saw. No, he wasn’t in a heaven full of clouds and angels with harps, nor was he in fiery hell.

Sonny’s world had _hue._

Which was weird, because as far as he remembered, before he got shot, everything was in black and white. He’d stared at the black barrel of a gun, the suspect a mix of different shades of grey.

But now, as he scanned his eyes around the room, he felt overwhelmed by the sudden burst of color. The walls were painted a drab tone close to light grey, the sofa at the foot of the bed cool. That must be what they call blue, and, as Sonny’s mother once said, the color of his eyes. There was a TV perched at one corner; its brightness and the kaleidoscope of its colors enough to hurt Sonny’s eyes.

Heart beating wildly, he let his eyelids flutter shut.

_His soulmate had touched him. But he didn’t know who._

Sonny had been waiting for that moment his entire life. When they were children, he and his sisters would dream up scenarios on how they would meet their soulmates. Only one of the four Carisis had succeeded. Wait – _two_ now.

Definitely, getting shot, going into surgery, and waking up without even seeing his soulmate wasn’t one situation he’d thought about.

“Mr. Carisi?” a voice came from the door.

He opened his eyes and found a man in a doctor’s uniform at the doorframe. Beneath his lab coat, he was in a blue dress-shirt and deep red necktie. His brown, greying hair was combed neatly atop his head, expression soft and warm. _Handsome._ Sonny’s guts somersaulted.

“I’m happy to see you’re awake,” the man said, moving inside the room, a clipboard in his hand. When he’d reached the side of Sonny’s bed, the detective could clearly see the brightness of his eyes. A color that feels like earth and forests and nature.

 _This must be what they call_ green.

“Me too, doc,” Sonny rasped out. The roughness of his throat made him cough.

The doctor turned to take a glass of water from the table and offered it to Sonny. He stretched his arm until the rim of the glass was on Sonny’s lips, gently tilting it as he downed the water. From the corner of his eyes, he could see the doctor watching him intently.

“Thank you,” muttered Sonny as he finished. The doctor – _Dr. Barba_ , his nameplate said – gave him a tight-lipped smile before placing the glass on the table.

“So, luckily, none of your organs got hit by the bullet,” Barba began to explain. “It barely scraped your liver, so we had to perform surgery to take it out. Based on your recent blood samples, there aren’t any infections internally, but we’d have to keep you here for at least a week to be sure.”

“Jeez, doc,” Sonny gritted his teeth. “When can I get back to work?”

The doctor stared at him unbelievably. “You wake up in a hospital and your first thought is when you can endanger your life again?”

“For an SVU detective whose life is constantly on the line, I really do hate hospitals,” Sonny replied, the corner of his lips tugging upwards.

“As your doctor, I’d advise you _not_ to be the hero next time.”

“Since when did you become _my_ doctor, anyway?”

“Since you got shot in the stomach,” Barba bit back, matching Sonny’s sarcasm. “And I’d give it at least a month before you can go back to your job. Still, I’ll have to do a check-up to see if you’re fit to go out in the field.”

Suddenly, the thought of routinely coming back to the hospital to see those beautiful pair of green eyes again didn’t sound too bad.

When Sonny didn’t reply, Barba nodded once and said a soft “I’ll be back” before turning around to leave.

“Wait,” Sonny managed to croak out. The doctor tilted his head towards Sonny, one eyebrow shooting up. “Uh, did you perform my surgery?”

Barba nodded carefully. “Yes. Why?”

“Nothing.” Sonny couldn’t even say what he was thinking, because what he was thinking was _impossible._ There were probably a good twenty people who touched his skin while he was unconscious – paramedics and detectives and nurses and doctors. Maybe part of him just wanted _it_ to be the sharp-eyed doctor standing in front of him.

Barba gave him a small smile before walking out of the door, closing it behind him after sparing Sonny one last look.

+

Sonny spent the past week lying on the hospital bed with various friends and family hanging out in his room. At one point, Sunday, the entire Carisi clan had gone into the hospital after church, bringing Sonny baked goods and homecooked pasta. His sisters brought their children and husbands, the kids nearly killing Sonny when they almost pulled out the IV from his veins. It was an overwhelming feat to finally see the people he loved most in a thousand different colors.

But he’d kept his mouth shut, unable to tell even his closest sister of the news.

Dr. Barba had entered the chaos just as the family was watching baseball on the TV. Sonny’s mother bombarded him with a billion questions, offering him to stay for some of her cannolis. Seeing the redness in the doctor’s face, Sonny got his fussy mother out of the poor guy’s ass, the two of them exchanging amused smiles before Barba walked out of the door.

Before his family left a full five hours after arriving, Sonny asked his mother to leave a tupperware of her food. She’d kissed his forehead before putting the container of cannolis on the table.

When Barba returned that night, Sonny offered him the pastries.

“I’m not taking ‘no’ for an answer, doc,” Sonny had said, a smile forming on his face. The doctor smirked at him before taking the container in his hands and exiting the room.

So far, Sonny’s stay at the hospital has been quite eventful. Other than his family, Liv has been visiting him frequently, as well as Amanda and Fin. He’s grateful for the presence of his colleagues at a time like this, but even so, he’s still itching to go back to SVU.

On the 11th day, Sonny could already walk towards the bathroom all by himself. Well, he’d have to lean a bit to the wall for support, but that was still a win in his books. He was getting better quickly, and this would have been good news if Sonny hadn’t developed an inappropriate crush on his doctor.

He was absentmindedly watching news on the TV when a knock came from the door. Barba poked his head inside before entering, closing the door behind him.

Today he’s wearing a pale blue shirt with a pink striped tie. Cataloging the man’s many outfits had become one of Sonny’s favourite past-times. Everything the man had worn so far probably cost more than three months of Sonny’s rent.

But despite his usual crisp and clean attire, something was different about the doctor today. His hair was ruffled ever so slightly, the top button of his shirt unbuttoned, tie loose. He looked worn out. Tired.

“How are you feeling, Sonny?”

“Great,” he beamed.

Barba rose a perfect brow. “And you’re not just saying that because you want to get out of here?”

It was strange how easily the man could read him. “Of course not.” He clicked his tongue before adding, “How about you?”

“Huh?”

“How are you?”

Barba seemed to be caught off-guard by the question, because suddenly he was staring at Sonny with wide eyes and a gaping mouth. Quickly, he caught himself, switching his clipboard to the other hand.

“What, you got a degree in Psychology, Sonny?”

Sonny rolled his eyes. “Come on, doc, I don’t need to be a shrink to see how exhausted you are. How long have you been here, anyway?”

The doctor spared him a look before dropping down to the seat beside Sonny, massaging the space between his eyebrows. “I don’t know,” he admitted lowly. “I stopped counting after 36 hours.”

Sonny’s inner Italian mother suddenly sprang to the surface. “ _Barba, jeez._ You really need to get your ass out of this place and get some rest,” he said, moving to a sitting position on the bed. He winced at the small pain at his abdomen, but didn’t pay it much mind.

With a sly smile, he added, “I can survive a day without you babying me.”

Barba’s head whipped up at that, an unreadable expression on his face. “Excuse me?”

“Well,” Sonny shrugged, falling back to the bed. “A little birdie told me she didn’t get why you always come here since she could handle my recovery on her own.”

He groaned, head falling to his palm. “Was it Rita? I bet it was Rita.”

Sonny just laughed. “If you wanted my mom’s homecooked meals, you could’ve just asked.”

A small chuckle escaped from Barba’s mouth. He straightened his back without saying another word, tired eyes returning some of its bright glow.

Sonny offered a small smile. “I’m serious. Don’t burn yourself out. It wouldn’t take long before you’re occupying the room next to mine.”

Barba spared him one last look before slapping his thighs, standing up. “Sure thing, _doc._ I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“I’ll be here.”

A smile formed on Barba’s lips, soft and genuine. He whispered a ‘ _thank you’_ – below his breath; so low Sonny almost didn’t catch it – before walking out of the door.

+

When Barba had signed Sonny’s release a few days later, it didn’t take him long before calling his mom and asking for a ride. While waiting for his mother to come pick him up, Sonny remained in the hospital room, silently hoping a certain someone would walk into the door to say goodbye. Unfortunately, none came.

Slightly disappointed, Sonny was wheeled out of his room by his mom an hour later. He stopped by the nurse’s station to thank Rita and the other nurses, biting his tongue before he could ask where Barba was. He was being ridiculous, he knew that.

But ever since his world got tinted in hues, he’d been thinking of his soulmate non-stop. Whoever the hell it was. The little part of him that hoped it was the doctor was swiftly shot down, since Barba had never said anything about it. Hell, for all he knows, Barba could very well be married and straight.

_He’s being ridiculous._

“Alright, you just wait here,” his mom stopped at the entrance of the hospital, parking Sonny to the side. “Let me bring the car around.” She squeezed his cheeks before walking towards the parking lot in front.

Sonny was busy watching the cloudless blue sky, mesmerized by its beauty, when someone called behind him.

“Hey, Sonny!”

He didn’t have to turn around to know who it was. “Hey, doc.” Sonny looked up when the doctor stopped beside him. “For a second there, I thought you were just gonna send me out without saying goodbye.”

“That would be rude, wouldn’t it?” Barba replied, a hint of a smile on his face.

Sonny returned the expression. He held out his hand and said, “Help me up, will you?”

Barba looked at Sonny’s outstretched arm before grabbing his hand, pulling him up with all his strength. Sonny stumbled as soon as he was on his feet, Barba’s other hand landing on his shoulder to steady him. The detective’s cheeks were getting warm at the touch. As soon as he regained balance, he withdrew his hand.

He managed to look down at Barba’s eyes. “Thanks for taking care of me, doc. And for the company.” (There were nights where Sonny would wake up, still half-asleep, in the middle of the night, and find Barba sitting on the chair beside the bed, doing nothing in particular. None of them ever mentioned it, and Sonny had always dismissed these encounters as mere dreams.)

“Part of the job description,” Barba replied. “Thanks for the food, too. Your mom makes the best pasta.”

Before he could think, Sonny blurted out, “Hey, maybe I can cook you some of that stuff, too. I’m not as good as Ma, but I think I’m decent enough.”

The doctor nodded, grinning. His smile was so bright and beautiful, the corner of his eyes crinkling. “I’d like that, Sonny.”

The glowing expression on his face made Sonny’s heart beat rapidly, his entire chest threatening to burst any second. Once, again, without thinking, he said, “You know, er, I’ve been meaning to ask you –“

Barba looked at him expectantly.

“I don’t know how to say this, uh, without sounding weird,” Sonny stammered, rubbing the back of his neck abashedly. “But when I woke up from my surgery, I could suddenly see color. And before that, I couldn’t, so –“

“You know how hard it is to perform surgery on someone you _just_ discovered is your soulmate?”

“I – _what?_ ”

Barba met his eyes. “When you were being wheeled in, I accidentally touched your shoulder as the paramedics were telling me about the situation. Imagine how I felt when the first color I saw was the deep red blood smeared all over your body.”

Sonny couldn’t even breathe properly. “I – I’m sorry,” he said. “But why didn’t you tell me this when I woke up?”

Barba shrugged. “It wasn’t the right time. You just got shot. I didn’t think it was appropriate to tell you.”

“But now?”

He smiled. “Well, you’re not covered in blood. Plus, you can already stand, so…”

“Come over tonight.”

“What?”

Sonny grinned. “I wanna say thanks to the man who saved my life.”

Barba had a similar lovesick expression etched across his face. “I guess I can swing by. Make sure the wound is healed, and that you’re eating right, all that jazz.”

All of a sudden, Sonny’s mother pulled over with the minivan, rolling down the window to call his son. She spotted Barba and greeted him too, accent thick as honey. Sonny immediately stole the pen hanging on the doctor’s coat pocket and grabbed Barba’s hand.

“Call me,” he said, scribbling his number messily on the other’s palm. After he finished, he looked up at a mesmerized Barba. Sonny squeezed his hand before climbing onto the car.

As soon as he’s inside, he rolled down the window. “See you tonight.”

Barba smiled once more. Bright and comforting. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”


End file.
